Architectural aluminium glazing systems from Technal have been supplied for one of the world’s most challenging construction projects.

Marina Bay Sands is a US$5.7bn waterfront development in Singapore – the most expensive stand-alone integrated resort ever built.

Designed by Boston-based Safdie Architects for the Las Vegas Sands Corporation, the scheme is a magnificent feat of engineering, which has created an impressive icon on the Singapore skyline.

Three 55-storey hotel towers are crowned with a 1.2 hectare SkyPark – a tropical oasis that floats 200m high on top of the soaring towers and cantilevering 65m beyond. The SkyPark accommodates a public observation deck with spectacular 360° panoramic views, lavishly landscaped gardens, roof-top restaurants and a 150m long infinity swimming pool – the world’s longest elevated pool.

Two thousand of Technal’s GXi sliding balcony doors have been installed for the luxury hotel rooms, totalling 25,000sqm of glazing. The system was specially adapted to accommodate glass that exceeded 31mm, to provide a higher level of acoustic performance in line with the hotel’s opulent specification. The glazing also helps to maximise natural light.

Technal also supplied its MX Visible Grid curtain walling which was used to areas of the hotel’s ground floor on each of the three towers.

Marina Bay Sands has created a completely new high density urban district for Singapore’s waterfront and a new gateway to this densely populated island. According to architect Moshe Safdie, “Marina Bay Sands is really more than a building project, it is a microcosm of a city rooted in Singapore’s culture, climate and contemporary life. Our challenge was to create a vital public place at the district-urban scale – in other words, to address the issue of mega-scale and invent an urban landscape that would work at the human scale.”

Facilities at Marina Bay Sands include a 120,000sqm convention and exhibition centre with one of the largest ballrooms in Asia; a series of layered gardens; a 74,000sqm multi-level retail arcade for designer shopping; gourmet dining; theatres with seating for up to 4,000 people, and an art and science museum. Central to the development is the world’s most expensive casino – located on four levels, this atrium-style space sits under a spectacular 7-tonne Swarovski chandelier.

The final phase of Marina Bay Sands is due to open at the end of 2010.

Technal’s GXi sliding window and door system, which is used at Marina Bay Sands, is a stylish, robust and high specification glazing solution. It features clean, narrow 41mm sight lines to maximise natural light, profiles can be flat-faced or curved, and there is a choice of window or door sizes to suit individual project requirements.

The system has been rigorously tested to 20,000 open/close cycles; fixings and mountings are concealed for an improved appearance, and it benefits from a 9mm flush polyamide thermal break for thermal efficiency. Other features include strong frames, durable hardware, structural accuracy, and a quality, unobtrusive track and roller system for reliability and a smooth sliding operation, even with the heaviest leaf sizes. Configurations range from a simple two-leaf system to a multi-panel sliding patio door or window on two tracks.